My colleague James Masson had the pleasure of knowing Ian Redford, who, sadly, recently passed away.
James was immensely proud of the fact that Ian and he went to the same school, Perth High School, the educational establishment which also numbers Archie Knox, former Scotland keeper Jim Blyth, ex-Manchester City and Newcastle No 2 Ian Miller and St Johnstone’s David Wotherspoon among its former pupils.
And he tells a story largely unknown about Ian. James recalls: “Ian was not only a good footballer and all round good guy but a generous host as I found out upon visiting his then house at Carpow on the banks of the River Tay.
“And he was also a decent talent spotter. He acted as an agent for Darren Fletcher when the Manchester United man was a teenager making his start in the game.
“As Ian was a keen golfer and Darren was also pretty handy with a golf club in his hands, they discussed Darren’s career over a round or two of golf.
“Ian thought going to French football would be good for Darren so he took him to Lille. However, it was Man U who got Darren’s signature.
“When I spoke to Darren a few years later and mentioned his trial spin at Lille, he remarked tongue-in-cheek: ‘Ian Redford was a good judge of a player and also a pretty decent golfer.”
Like myself and so many others, Darren was saddened to hear of Ian’s untimely death. He, genuinely, was one of life’s good guys.
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